It recognizes service in response to a crisis outside the United States.

The PHS Global Response Service Award is awarded to officers who participate in a USPHS Commissioned Corps deployment as part of a designated response to a crisis outside the United States.

The USPHS Commissioned Corps defines a "crisis" response as one which responds to a natural or man-made disaster and which the Surgeon General of the United States has determined establishes eligibility for the award.

To qualify, an officer must serve in a deployment away from his or her regular duty assignment, be deployed for at least 14 consecutive days, and deploy in the designated USPHS Commissioned Corps uniform unless the Surgeon General exempts him or her from the uniform requirement.

The officer also must have completed his or her participation after 1 October 2004 to be eligible for the award.